‘It is my responsibility’: Mathew Ngau Jau on lifelong dedication to preserving and promoting ‘sape’ musical instrument

KUALA LUMPUR, May 28 — Meet Mathew Ngau Jau. a stalwart guardian of the Kenyah community’s cultural heritage.

For decades now, he has served as both custodian and ambassador of the sape, an instrument steeped in the traditions of his ancestors.

To Mathew, the sape is a gift of past wisdom and he believes that it is his duty to pass down the knowledge and protect the traditions of his people.

“As an Orang Ulu, it is my responsibility to see that the sape lives on as it is the legacy of the Orang Ulu Kenyah.”

The 72-year-old’s affinity for the sape blossomed during his formative years in Long Semiyang, Sarawak where during the twilight hours everyone was serenaded by the melodious strains of his elders’ performances on the longhouse verandah.

Inspired by the music’s timeless allure, he embarked on a lifelong journey of mastery and preservation.

“When I was young, I lived like other children on the farm with my parents, farming, fishing and hunting,” he reminisced.

“At night when we are very tired from a hard day’s work, the old people - all the uncles - would start playing their sape, and we young people would sit around them with a small lamp and listen to their music.”

Driven by passion and purpose in the last two decades or so, Mathew has dedicated himself to not only honing his own skills but also imparting his knowledge to others.

Through performances, workshops and mentorship, he has become a beacon of inspiration, nurturing a new generation of sape enthusiasts and ensuring the instrument’s enduring legacy.

“You can see young people wanting to learn the sape nowadays. This was not the case sometime back when there were so few people who could play the sape.

“Nowadays not just my own people want to learn, but people from other races, cultures and nationalities,” said Mathew.

He added that all of his children can play the sape and that one of his four sons, Jackson Liang, is in the popular world music band At Adau, which also features his cousin Ezra Tekola, who plays the sape too.

Matthew receiving his Lifetime Achievement Award from BOH Plantations executive chairman Caroline Russell at the 19th BOH Cameronian Arts Awards. — Picture courtesy of Kakiseni

Mathew’s efforts were recently recognised on a grand stage when he received the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 19th BOH Cameronian Arts Awards ceremony held at PJPAC in 1Utama, Petaling Jaya.

Former winners include Krishen Jit, Datuk Ramli Ibrahim, Datuk Faridah Merican, and last year’s winner Dondang Sayang exponent, Datuk Baharim Mohd Sharip.

For Mathew, the accolade is not merely a personal triumph but a testament to the resilience and vitality of Kenyah traditions.

Previously used for healing rites and celebrations, the sape continues to be the life of every occasion in the community - no event is complete without the sound of sape.

With a commitment to revitalising the sape’s prominence beyond the confines of the rainforest, Mathew endeavours to usher in a new era of appreciation and understanding.

By preserving its traditional foundations while fostering opportunities for innovation and growth, he seeks to breathe new life into an ancient art form.

“My advice for those who want to play their own music on the sape is simple. You must know its roots. You must not forget the old songs.

“You must be thankful to my ancestors who gave us the tunes of the sape. Only then can you go on and venture into your own styles.”

Aside from making and teaching the sape, Mathew paints on wood, tree bark and sometimes canvas, following in the footsteps of the late Tusau Padan, a first world-famous Sarawakian sape maestro and his friend.

Through workshops, performances and collaborations with local and international musicians, Mathew has successfully bridged the gap between generations. This ensures that the tradition of sape music will not be just a relic of the past but a vibrant symbol of heritage and identity, resonating far beyond the boundaries of time and place.

Legacy to him is the longevity of sape. For Matthew, as long as the instrument continues to sing, his community, their traditions and stories will live.